When the US Capitol Hill was stormed by a mob of US President Donald Trump supporters on Wednesday, many, including US President-elect Joe Biden, called it an “assault” on American democracy. But it wasn’t just this one incident, rather, a systemic dismantling of America’s democratic institutions such as the judiciary and law enforcement that has led up to this moment, say mediapersons and commentators. And yet, they add, the democratic spirit, though in more peril than ever, continues to be upheld by the fourth estate – independent media.
“The term independent media itself is a misnomer,” says Naresh Fernandes, editor of Scroll.in. “Because journalists and media are supposed to be independent in the first place.” Unfortunately, though, that is not always the case. Therefore, independent or non-partisan media, that is not driven by political or corporate interests, while playing a key role in bringing inconvenient and ugly truths that are otherwise sought to be buried, has a major role to play in a democracy by encouraging variance in perspective and debate.
However, independent media faces a myriad of challenges in today’s world. These include being refuted and dismissed by the powerful – like outgoing US President Donald Trump himself – when it doesn’t cater to their narratives; facing more gagging and attacks from establishments when the media is smaller; and not having as many resources and reach, which is the case in India.
Jency Jacob, managing editor of Boom, says that in the US, independent media – including mainstream publications like the Washington Post and The New York Times (NYT) – have found a wedge between themsleves and the public after being name-called and defamed by the outgoing president himself. Trump has been known to brand news stories that go against his narrative as ‘fake news’.
“When their President himself is dismissing these publications, people are likely to believe that there is some credibility to what their President is saying,” observes Mahrukh Inayet, a media strategist and commenter. “Other institutions have also been brought down during his reign, not just the fourth estate.”
Even so, Naresh points out that it is the big media in the US, “such as CNN and NYT that have been reporting on Trump’s deceits and shenanigans from the very beginning. Independent media are what have told us the story.”
While there are similar dismissals of reports and news stories that challenge the establishment in India too, the difference here is that independent media rarely has the reach or resources at par with established or legacy media.
“An NYT and Washington Post have proper management and funding, and are legacy organizations with a robust journalistic tradition. They have thrived with media independence in the US. Here, the media organisations are unable to report like their American counterparts. Partly, this is because our business model is broken – when people don’t want to pay for news, we become accountable to our advertisers and funders as opposed to readers. There isn’t an institutional mechanism here that ensures that our business doesn’t get affected for doing our job,” Jacob explains.
As a result, independent media also face hurdles when they want to grow in India. “As they grow, more business interests can exert influence. So, newsrooms need to be small, nimble footed, and not expanded beyond a point where the essence of journalism is lost,” Jacob adds.
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Apart from politicians and corporates looking to turn narratives in their favour, the media now has to compete with another player – social media. While on one hand social media acts as a check and balance by keeping new media on its toes, it is also a place where misinformation can spread quickly and with real-life consequences.
Jacob states that this is another reason why independent media becomes important in a democracy. “We often get caught in a game of narratives. But independent media should stay away from this, and is more likely to report facts. For instance, we make it clear to reporters that we are not activists. Independent media is accountable to the reader foremost.”
Giving the example of the US Capitol building attacks and the discourse around it on social media, Mahrukh says, “While some would call it assault on democracy, others could say that the people were merely exercising their right to protest. If a media has a certain agenda, it is likely to ignore one of those points of view. But independent media is most likely to bring both out. After all, what is democracy without debate? It cannot be replaced by social media influencers as well, even if they appear non-partisan. While I may enjoy an influencer’s point of view, I cannot rely on them for facts – something that the media is held accountable for.”
There is also a very real risk when only one kind of narrative is propagated. “It is self-defeating, and does not prepare you for the reality. Take demonetisation in India as an example. Several media reported on how this was a great move. And now that the economy is in free fall because of several consecutive bad financial decisions, people are not able to understand why it is happening,” Naresh says.
“In elections, for instance, parties want their preferred narratives to be amplified. But it is independent media that makes it job to bring out facts that are unpleasant, despite risk of backlash,” Mahrukh adds.
In India, the major reason why independent media need support is because they are smaller, have fewer resources and lesser reach than established or big media.
The vast gap in the resources and reach at Indian independent media’s disposal makes them easier targets, makes their job harder, and just as crucial. For instance, in the last decade (2010-20), 154 journalists in India were arrested, detained, interrogated or served show cause notices for their professional work. Most of these were in BJP-ruled states, and a majority of them were working for non-English print publications and television channels, or freelancers published on online social media platforms, found a study done by independent journalist Geeta Seshu for the Free Speech Collective. It is safe to assume that a significant proportion of these scribes were working for/published in smaller, or independent media.
“Unlike the US, we have much smaller organisations here that are trying to maintain independence,” Mahrukh explains. “They have to compete with social media influencers and troll armies that are out to destroy everyone’s credibility. In the US, big media are able to maintain independence because they have big businesses supporting them with a hands-off approach. So, a Washington Post doesn’t see influence coming from a corporate interest. This doesn’t happen in India.”
Jacob adds that it is the responsibility of the media to hold public offices accountable, to hold public servants to the claims that they make to people and verify or bust narratives propagated by the powerful. These are crucial to keeping the democratic spirit alive, experts TNM spoke to, say.
“I think people are realizing this more, especially after the pandemic. There has been more suspicion around what establishments are claiming versus what’s happening on ground. People are realizing the value of credible news more,” Mahrukh observes.
“Independent media can only be profitable and thrive if people start paying for non-partisan news,” Jacob says. “And let’s not forget that an independent fourth estate is the citizen’s responsibility too. They have to be media literate and understand what they are reading, what they are sampling, to keep democracy alive.”
